In the late 1940s the pistol was exported to a number of countries and military contracts were signed with India, Poland, and several South American nations. The Czech government ordered 45,000, which were produced in 1945 to 1946. Upon the conclusion of the conflict the company quickly returned to its old name and to production of the Cz-27 as well. These sidearms were primarily issued to security forces and police units, with reports that the Luftwaffe and Army also employed the pistol as an acceptable substitute. In all, 475,000 units were produced under German direction before the American army took control of the Strakonice factory in May, 1945.
In the 13 years before German control the average monthly output of Cz-27s was just over 1000 per month, but with the logistical pressures of the Second World War the Strakonice plant’s output jumped to over seven times that number. This division would see heavy fighting in France as part of the German attempt to contain the allied landing, and again in December as part of the German Ardennes offensive. The officer to the far right appears to be carrying a Model 27 holster. Panzer Grenadiers from the 12th SS Panzer Division in the spring of 1944. The first batch of 2,700 pistols followed not long after, but several design changes and slow deliveries forced the Czech military to purchase 15,000 German Ortgies and several thousand surplus Dreyse pistols as a stop gap measure. Two were selected for additional trials and in the fall of 1921 the 9mm Parabellum design by Josef Nickl was accepted. DevelopmentĪ number of designs were submitted by newly formed Czech arms companies. As part of this, in 1920, trials were held to select a new pistol for the Czech military which currently used an array of old revolvers, Austrian Model 07 and Model 12 semi-automatics, and Hungarian Frommer Stops. The current array of military equipment on hand was impossible to support, so a general standardization plan became one of the first priorities. It seemed clear that, in order to maintain their independence, a strong army would be required as well as a self-sufficient arms industry to supply and equip it. First among these was the new Czech army. The establishment of Czechoslovakia at the end of the First World War not only created a new country, but, for the leadership of this new republic, a number of pressing problems. This pistol carries a WaA76 German acceptance stamp and bears the slide legend “fnh Pistole Modell 27 Kal 7.65,” which show that it is a later German production version. 27 or more commonly Cz-27) and a stamped German issued holster.